May 20, 2026  |  SIGN UP

Michael Bürgi
SENIOR EDITOR, MEDIA BUYING AND PLANNING

The news over last weekend that Publicis purchased LiveRamp is the latest example of how the holding companies are trying to become tech platforms.  

Publicis has been the most aggressive in its acquisitive inclinations, having also bought Lotame, Captiv8 and Epsilon to mention just a few of its tech-oriented purchases. One has to assume that Publicis knew its purchase of LiveRamp would impact the latter's business, which is somewhat dependent on being independent — being owned by a holdco takes that away. So it makes sense the French-owned giant plans to apply the data collection firm's tech to its own holdings, while also indirectly preventing its rivals from using it since they won't want to. 

Will the longer-term strategy of teching up work for the holdcos? Based on the agentic dreams and desires we're seeing play out in the marketplace, they certainly believe so. Meanwhile, a raft of independents are only too happy to go to market offering a less tech-intensive alternative to clients. Time will tell who's right.  

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